Michele Fiore Disciplinary Case Goes to Nevada Panel After Hearing Ends

Nevada’s judicial discipline commission is weighing Michele Fiore’s case after a three-day hearing in which the suspended Pahrump justice of the peace denied misusing police memorial donations and her attorneys challenged the commission’s authority over conduct that preceded her judicial service.

The hearing ended Oct. 21 with testimony from former Nye County prosecutor Jason Gunnell. Commissioners then adjourned to deliberate, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. No final decision was announced at the hearing’s conclusion.

Fiore testified in her own defense Monday, telling commissioners she never used memorial donations for personal expenses.

She also described spending her own money to support community events during her service on the Las Vegas City Council. The station reported that she attributed her unsuccessful 2026 reelection campaign, at least in part, to the commission’s actions.

Fiore finished third in the June primary for her Pahrump judicial seat.

“Of all my elected positions, this was my favorite,” she told commissioners, according to the station’s account.

The Pahrump Valley Times reported that Fiore said she believed developer Olympia Companies had paid for the memorial statue honoring Metropolitan Police officer Alyn Beck because she had never received a bill.

She testified that her fundraising supported multiple community activities, including events and park-related communications. Fiore also said she would have reimbursed donors who requested their money back.

Gunnell, the final witness, offered a favorable account of Fiore’s courtroom performance. He described her as fair and willing to acknowledge unfamiliar legal issues.

In closing arguments, commission special counsel Thomas Donaldson urged commissioners to find misconduct. Fiore’s attorney, Paola Armeni, argued that the disputed actions occurred before Fiore became a judge and should not be converted into violations of judicial duties she did not yet hold.

Armeni also asked the commission to consider Fiore’s professionalism on the bench. She told the Review-Journal that a decision could take months.

The disciplinary proceedings followed a federal prosecution involving Fiore’s fundraising while she served on the Las Vegas City Council.

A jury found her guilty on Oct. 3, 2024, of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and six counts of wire fraud.

In its announcement following the verdict, the Justice Department said evidence showed Fiore solicited more than $70,000 for police memorials while promising donors that their contributions would fund construction. Prosecutors said the money instead went toward personal and political expenses, including rent, fundraising bills and payments to family members.

President Donald Trump granted Fiore a pardon on April 23, 2025. The Justice Department’s clemency records identify the conspiracy count and six wire-fraud counts as the offenses covered.

The commission’s official account distinguishes several stages of Fiore’s suspension.

It initially suspended her with pay in July 2024 after her indictment. Following the guilty verdict, it suspended her without pay in October.

In May 2025, after the pardon, the commission rescinded the unpaid suspension and imposed a suspension with pay under a separate statutory provision.

That provision permits an interim paid suspension pending resolution of a complaint when the commission determines that a judge poses a substantial threat of serious harm to the public or the administration of justice.

The commission’s continued proceedings establish that the pardon did not end the disciplinary case. Its interim suspension remains distinct from the final decision now under consideration.